Close to My Heart & Alison Krogsgaard

Today, we welcome guest blogger Alison Krogsgaard, who creates wonderful projects with Close To My Heart!

Hello there! Wow, I am beyond excited to have the privilege and honor to share a bit about myself and Close to My Heart on the Canadian Scrapbooker blog! I am a thirty-something year old mom to 5 year old twins, happily living in Whitecourt, Alberta, and if you can imagine it, you’d think I was one of my children with all the squealing, dancing and overall giddiness I experienced when I received the invitation to be a guest blogger! For me, this is a huge honor! In addition to being a mom to busy twins (who also like to ‘scrapbook’ and ‘make cards’), I’m also a stay at home mom, and most recently a Close to My Heart consultant. Deep down, I had secretly always thought selling paper crafting supplies would be awesome (and now I know I was right), but it took a simple comment during a conversation with a friend to encourage me to jump in. On April 1, I celebrated one year as a consultant (whoo!)- I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than to share a bit about this phenomenal company and the wide range of beautiful products they carry.

I had a really hard time choosing exactly what I wanted to share- there’s so much to offer! Are you a seasoned scrapbooker or are you new to scrapbooking? Each of our card making and scrapbooking Workshops on the Go are equipped with most of the materials you need- including instructions to easily and quickly get your project completed. The Workshop on the Go is a fantastic way to skip the lack of inspiration and dive straight into finishing a set of cards or layouts you can be proud of. There’s nothing worse than being all excited to craft- you’ve got everything you need to start, such as the paper, the ink, embellishments and pictures, and then you sit, stuck, because inspiration just won’t come to you. With the Workshop on the Go, inspiration will no longer be a problem. There is enough material included in the kit to create two double page layouts.That’s 4 layouts in total! To create the additional layouts, all you need to do is visit the Close to My Heart website for the instructions. And honestly, there would still likely be paper and other material left once you’re completed all of your layouts. How would you use the rest? The sky’s the limit!

This particular layout was created using one of Close to My Hearts’ exclusive Cricut cartridges. Yes, Close to My Heart also has some Cricut Bundles- isn’t that cool?! There are a number of cartridges to choose from, and each of them includes three My Acrylix D-size stamp sets and up to 700 images per cartridge. Choose between the Cricut Artfully Sent collection, Artbooking collection, Artiste collection and the Art Philosophy collection. Furthermore, the Artbooking, Artiste and Art Philosophy bundles include three 12×9 inch sheets of coordinating Dimensional Elements chipboard shapes. The Artfully Sent cartridge bundle also includes a pack of white daisy cardstock (which I seem to reach for first a lot these days) for your scrapbook and card projects, as well as Off the Page projects! Just imagine the possibilities- they’re endless. The possibilities don’t end with the Workshops on the Go and the Cricut Bundles. Picture My Life pushes those possibilities beyond the envelope.

Have you heard of Project Life? Do you know what it is? If you’re not sure, it’s part of a new trend called pocket-style scrapbooking. Take your pictures, slide them into pockets located in special page protectors (ones that support pocket style scrapbooking), and insert coordinating cards into the pockets you decide to leave empty! The cards are usually included in a Project Life collection. Close to My Heart has something similar, though they call it Picture My Life. Picture My Life scrapbook kits include forty four 4×6 patterned cards and seventy eight 3×4 inch patterned cards, as well as one 12×12 inch Designed Cover Sheet and ten 12×12 Memory Protectors (page protectors, in other words).

CTMH Memory Protectors, Jackson Picture My Life Scrapbook System

There are a few different Memory Protector layouts to choose from- all you need to do is choose the layouts you like best. Or, choose them all! There are a variety to choose from. Use your imagination with your left over cards, They can be used for so much more than just scrapbooking! Mini albums, cards, or home decor are all great places to start.

Maybe card making interests you more than scrapbooking. Its also another passion of mine. Close to My Heart offers card making Workshops on the Go, as well as A Cut Above Quick Kits . In the same way the Workshops on the Go saves you time and the stress of finding inspiration, so does the A Cut Above Quick Kit. All the pieces necessary to create your cards are pre-cut and pre-folded for you. All that’s required is assembly! The only other items that’s necessary to complete your cards are ink and stamps, which aren’t included in the kit. Choose between treat bags, or Christmas, Thank You or Birthday card kits.

For all your stamping, crafting, and scrapbooking ideas, Close to My Heart has everything you need to create beautiful projects. Whether you’re looking for great cards to make or a quick and simple way to create an album in a short amount of time, Close to My Heart probably has it!

Comments

Awesome article Alison! You’ve barely scratched the surface of how awesome these products are for preserving our memories. Love your artwork and hope you’ll have the opportunity to showcase more in the future. Keep it coming 🙂

Alison, I have seen your work on scrapbooks & cards for years. You have a great talent for creating keepsakes & your blog is perfect for showing the rest of us how to take the plunge! Love your passion and creativity. Thank you for sharing online & I hope we get to read more pointers in the future.